Improved apparatus for cutting and stamping soap



lUra-iran STATES AParnrvrr @aaron HARVEY PHELPS VAND ALVAH PHELPS, `OF ALBANY, NEV YORK.

IMPROVED APPARATUS FOR CUTTING AND STAMPING SOAP.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 58,473, dated October 2, 1866.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that we, HARVEY PHELPs and VALVAH PHELPs, of Albany, in the county of Albany, in the State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Machine or Apparatus for Cutting and Stamping Hard Soap; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference r being had to the annexed drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a horizontal or top view of our invention, and Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the same.

The apparatus consists of a substantia-l table, of about thirty inches in height, to which is applied a lever pawl-feed, a transverse sliding frame, into which the cutting wire is strained, a vert-ical operating stamp bar or lever, which are to beoperated at proper intervals, independent of each other, and still further on are placed vertical edging-knives, which cut the bars to a uniform length, and in the center, between said knives,a gagingspur is placed, so that the bars may be divided in halves, unerringly, if it should be desired at any time afterward.

The object of this invention is to materially expedite the cutting and stamping of soap, and of making the bars in a'funiform manner from the slab,77 by the employment of simple mechanism, properly constructed and arranged, so as not to 4become deranged, but work smoothly.

To enable those skilled in the art to fully understand and construct the same, we will proceed to describe it as follows:

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

A, in bothgures, represents thetable to which the various devices are applied.

rlhe feeding f pparatus consists of a hand# lever, B, to which is secured a crank-shaft and pawl, C, which drops into the horizontal ratchet-piece D.- Said pawl is thrown out of contact with ratchet D when it is desired to return the feed-gage E, by simply elevating the lever B to its full height, the pawl being so hinged as to admit of this.

The device which is intended to cut the slab into uniform bars, consists of an iron fra-me, F, having a steel wire, a, strained vertically from top to base therein, and so placed, also, that it shall stand on either side of the soap slab at every stroke of the frame F, in order to admit of a free forward movement ot' the slab from contact with said wire. A knob or handle, b,

is secured to near end of the transverse slid inserted for the purpose of varying and equalizing the pressure of the stamps which are secured underneath said bar. H.

A transverse bar, I, securely holds two ed gin g-knives, ff, which reduce the bars,'after being severed from the slab, to a uniform length. A spur for gaging the bars into halves is also placed in the center between said knives. Underneath the barl are placed and securedthereto strips of thin iron, which extend underneath the stamp-bar H, and on either sides of the stamps, and above a plane of their faces, in order to prevent the lifting' of the bar of soap after being stamped. r A tensioned wire may be substituted for the centergage spur,if it is desirable to cutthe bars in two.

A guiding-ledge, J, is secured in the manner shown in Fig. 1, and a spring, K, for the purpose of conducting the slab truly through the apparatus.

rlhe operation of our invention is as follows: The slab of soap is placed on the bed in the manner indicated in the drawing, the feedgage being placed behind it. The lever B is raised and depressed down ou the stop indicated, with the left hand, then the right hand pulls -or pushes the frame F a full stroke. The bar is next stamped by placing theV foot on the lever or treadle G and depressing it. rlhe lever is then released, and the whole is again elevated to its former position. Again, the hand-lever B is raised and depressed, and the severed bar of soap is moved forward to the edging-knives ff.

Having thus described our invention, what we desire to secure by Letters Paten t, is-

1. The mode herein described for cutting and stamping soap, substantially as set forth.

2. The arrangement of the yfeed-guide E, cuttin g-frame F, sliding,` transversely to said feedguide, in combination with the stamping-bar H and edging-knives ff, the Whole constructed and arranged in order to operate as set forth.

3. The employment of a cutting-wire, a, tensioned in a transverse sliding fra-Ine, F, When used in combination with an intcrmitting feed, as shown and described, and for the purpose specied.

HARVEY PHELPS. ALVAH PHELPS.

Witnesses:

I. W. LATCHER, J AMEs MURPHY. 

